Car Not Starting - Help PLEASE

[ENGINR]

Ok I need some help - Electrics are not my forte and I'm almost ready to throw a rag in the petrol tank and burn my stupid car. I've got a CC Coupe and I'm running an EVO1 loom in the car (engine bay, body and dash) with an EVO1 ECU.

The thing was running fine when I pulled it off the road to repair the exhaust manifold. Now that the exhaust manifold and turbo are back on, the thing won't start.

1. I've replaced the battery with a brand new 550cca unit (which was the same as what I was running before I took it off the road)
2. When I turn the key, 1st turn I get the clock illuminating, 2nd turn I get the cluster 'reds' and green turbo indicator light coming on and the fuel pump is activated.
3. At ignition turn I get 'Click' and nothing. If I hold the key I get nothing, the cluster 'reds' and turbo light dim and that's it.
4. If I jump the car off another vehicle it will start.
5. When it's running it idles at something like 2500 - 3000rpm and is really erratic, it sounds like it's missing a cylinder or something.
6. When it's running, if I turn the headlights on, the cluster 'reds' and turbo light and speedo etc will illuminate. If I turn the headlights off, the cluster 'reds' go off, when I turn the headlights back on, the 'reds' don't come on
7. If I turn the car off, it won't start again, and the headlights will switch off and cannot be turned back on.

What has really got me is that the thing was running fine up until I pulled the manifold and turbo off, I didn't modify any wiring and the only electric things I touched in the swap over were the o2 sensor which I had to unscrew from the dump pipe and the radiator fan wire which I needed to unplug.

Any help would be appreciated as I have the car booked in for a dyno tune on the 24th Oct and really don't want to have to miss this chance to get my car ready for some Xmas cruising.

 

[JSTYLE]

interesting.. sounds like its battery related..

check your earthing points.
check with a multi metre to see that your alternator is charging your battery..
check your fusible links and main fuses(engine bay)

to me it sounds battery.. cos if it starts its not:

coil packs
ignitors
or starter motor

bets on something to do with battery.. ie fuses or earthing points etc.

first i would do is put another battery in and see what it does, if it starts it.. check the battery voltage with a multi metre!

Jon

 

[bazeng]

agreed with jonny boy.

battery related.

it sounds as if your starter motor is not getting enough power to turn over.

when you jump start it, are you going
negative to negative on batteries
positive to positive on batteries

OR:

negative of batt to chassis of vehicle
positive to positive on batteries

anyway, check that the connector to the battery is okay.
apart from that, you might have to charge your battery if its been sitting for a while..

 

[(2much)]

coil packs & ignitors will not stop the starter motor from cranking, if you have charge in the battery

If the car is drawing load (lights dimming) you have to assume that it's the starter motor (that's the only think in the car, whilst it's off that can draw a large amount of current) even if the motor is not turning over, but it's reacting like this, the solinoid in the starter could be shagged,

If the starter motor is not at least clicking, and engaging i would start there.

The fact that when it is running its irratic, i would do as baz said and check your grounding points, and as jon said. use a multi meter.

 

[ENGINR]

All fixed!!

A bad earth at the negative terminal of the battery!

Shoulda found it sooner but I was looking in the engine bay, not the boot (where the battery is.. :roll: )

Ah well. Thanks for the input guys, appreciate the assistance.

 

[WindeX]

Good to hear, my old celica had an earthing problem that then killed an ignitor, took me ages to figure that shit out.

 

[ENGINR]

I feel kinda

But it's sorted now! Onto the black interior conversion!

 

[JSTYLE]

interesting.. sounds like its battery related..

check your earthing points.
check with a multi metre to see that your alternator is charging your battery..
check your fusible links and main fuses(engine bay)

to me it sounds battery.. cos if it starts its not:

coil packs
ignitors
or starter motor

bets on something to do with battery.. ie fuses or earthing points etc.

first i would do is put another battery in and see what it does, if it starts it.. check the battery voltage with a multi metre!

Jon

All fixed!!

A bad earth at the negative terminal of the battery!

Shoulda found it sooner but I was looking in the engine bay, not the boot (where the battery is.. :roll: )

Ah well. Thanks for the input guys, appreciate the assistance.

whose your daddy?!?!

LOL

Jon

 

[EVO-00X]

^^^ If you're his daddy then the poor dude's gonna grow up to be seriously fukd up man :lol: TIC

 

[EVOLANCER]

100% same problem with my old gsr... mine end up being the battery, n it not earthed correctly throughout the car...

if i saw this post sooner i would have said...

 

[ENGINR]

So I give it the VERY first squirt of boost on the main road outside of work on the way home. Not even a hard stab on the throttle....

and somehow fck the compressor wheel on the turbo. So the car is running, but now it's not boosting and my turbo is making a wailing siren like sound and I'm looking at a turbo rebuild. I preferred it when I had a battery problem.

I hate my f'ing car

 

[bazeng]

good stuff with the battery!

&

sorry to hear with the turbo.... :cry:
could it be an exhaust leak at the manifold to turbo? or manifold?

keep us up to date!

 

[JSTYLE]

So I give it the VERY first squirt of boost on the main road outside of work on the way home. Not even a hard stab on the throttle....

and somehow fck the compressor wheel on the turbo. So the car is running, but now it's not boosting and my turbo is making a wailing siren like sound and I'm looking at a turbo rebuild. I preferred it when I had a battery problem.

I hate my f'ing car

did you run the turbo in?

Jon

 

[ENGINR]

Yep, it was used on the old engine before I built the new one.

What are the signs of a stuffed turbo? It's not producing ANY boost, but that could be due to a leak in the cooler piping somewhere, it's making the police siren like wailing sound, but again, could that be due to a leak?

The car idles fine, which makes me think it's not a leak, as it would idle rough.....

When I turn the car off, it makes like a 'power down' type noise, like something that is spinning is slowing down (which leads me again to the turbo).

I don't know. If I pull the air intake pipe off and try to spin the turbo, should I be able to tell from that? What about the wategate, if that's stuck open that would cause it to not produce any boost, but the siren like noise???

 

[JSTYLE]

actuator is on etc..? tried testing the actuator with an air compressor to see if its opening?

without knowing ur turbo it sounds like a GT pumps 20g hiflow..cos they make a whistling sound.. i think its cos the comp wheel is rubbing against the comp cover.

id test the actuator first.. its hard to just stuff a turbo after doing a rebuild.

Jon

 

[CLuTZ]

When my b.o.v was leaking, it sounded like a siren.......


i'd take the intake hose off, get a camera down there to take a pic, and have a play with the comp wheel

 

[ENGINR]

It's a standard Big16G turbo. I'm going to take a good look at it all tonight.

 

[ENGINR]

Well, it was a smashed compressor wheel :cry:

But, good news is, it didn't do any damage to the engine

Better news is - it's been an excuse to rebuild it to as a 20G

It goes back on the engine tonight..... :twisted:

 

[EVO-00X]

Ahhh bad luck dude. What caused the damage?

 

[ENGINR]

It was that stupid black silicone seal ring that sits on the turbo inlet. It must have worked its way slightly out of position when I was re-installing the air intake pipe. The extra suction when I put my foot down must have been enough to rip it completely out of position and suck it through the compressor.